Forecasting thunderstorms and hailstorms by means of temperature and dew-point anomalies on a time-section chart

Summary  Vertical time-section charts for temperature and dew-point anomalies have been plotted. The temperature anomaly decreasing upwards give convection according to Byers and Braham [1]²). The coincidence of temperature anomalies with central minimum and of dew-point anomalies with central maximum, or of upward decreasing trend in temperature anomalies and upward increasing trend in dewpoint anomalies, correspond to the convection associated with greater moisture influx, thus representing the case of a thunderstorm. The mentioned anomalies have been found to occur in such a way that cells with central maximum are followed by those with central minimum, and vice versa. Thus simultaneous occurrences of upward decreasing anomalies in temperature, i.e. occurrence of cells with central minimum of temperature, and upward increasing anomalies in dew-point, i.e. occurrence of cells with central maximum, can be observed at any station, hence the occurrences of thunderstorms at that station can be predicted. Moreover, the two kinds of anomalies can give the idea (along with that of convection, of coming of the synoptic situation having dry air aloft and moist air below, which is the ideal condition) for the occurrence of a hailstorm (Fawbush andMiller [2]).